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Kobe Bryant has played all of two games this season, and he hasn’t looked particularly impressive in either. Yet it shouldn’t surprise anybody that the Lakers guard leads all Western Conference backcourt players in early All-Star voting results released Thursday.

Bryant’s 501,215 votes are more than 100,000 more than Chris Paul, who is second among West guards and one of the leading candidates for Most Valuable Player so far. Bryant was third in overall vote-getting behind LeBron James and Kevin Durant, respectively.

Bryant, 35, has been named to every NBA All-Star game since 2000. He missed the Lakers’ first 19 games while recovering from a torn left Achilles, averaging 14.5 points in limited minutes. In a preseason poll, a majority of NBA general managers named Houston’s James Harden, not Bryant, the league’s best shooting guard.

Bryant wasn’t the only star to benefit from his popularity despite his lack of impact on this season. Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo, who has yet to play after surgery on a torn ACL in February, is sixth among backcourt players in the East with 80,889 votes.